Hand tool for removing floor coverings



Oct. 6, 1959 L. w. LOCKWOOD 2,907,106

HAND TOOL FOR REMOVING FLOOR COVERINGS I United States Patent 7 2,907,106 7 HAND TOOL FOR REMOVING FLOOR COVERINGS Lawrence W. Lockwood, Spokane, Wash., assignor to Oscar Williams, Spokane, Wash.

Application July 12, 1954, Serial No. 442,458

' 2 Claims. 01. 30-169) of the .type referred to wherein a lateral forwardly presented sharp edge is provided to sever the cement bond between the floor and the covering.

A further object of the invention is to provide a machine of the type referred to wherein the tool is providedwith a fulcrum rearwardly spaced from a lateral forwardly presented sharp edge to provide means for lifting the floor covering from the floor by the lever principle of operation and also by use of the fulcrum the sharp edge may be raised and lowered and the inclination thereof shifted at the will of the operator.

Another object of the invention lies in the provision of a hand tool for removing cemented floor coverings which is unique in construction and comprises a minimum number of parts whichare assembled with facility and constitute a relatively inexpensive tool which is not liable to become inoperative and is very easily transported from one job to another in a conventional tool kit.

The above and other objects of the invention will become apparent during the course of the following description and the accompanying drawings, wherein a preferred form of the invention is shown. It should be understood, however, that the drawings and description are illustrative only and are not intended to limit the invention except insofar as it is limited by the claims.

In comparatively few years next passed it has become the custom of linoleum manufacturers to provide a product having a thin paper-like back instead of the old conventional burlap fabric backing. This construction provides a floor covering which has much less body strength than the previously described old type floor coverings. It also is customary to cement these floor coverings to the floor to provide them with sufficient body to prevent undue and excess wear thereto; and yet when it becomes necessary to remove the floor covering, the body strength thereof is such as to make it a very laborious and disagreeable job and, sometimes, nearly impossible. It is, therefore, the principal object of this invention to overcome the ditliculty encountered in removing linoleum floor covers which have been cemented to the floor and which do not have sufficient body strength to permit their being torn from the floor by grasping an edge of the linoleum and lifting itfrom the cement bond.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and in which like numerals are provided to designate like parts:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved tool;

Figure 2 is a view partially in side elevation and partially in vertical cross section upon an enlarged scale ice and having portions broken away for convenience of illustration;

Figure 3 is a perspective view upon a still further enlarged scale partially in cross section, showing a fragment of the improved fulcrum; and

Figure 4is a transverse vertical cross section taken at line 4-4 of Figure 2.

Having reference now more particularly to the drawing, I have shown my tool as comprising an elongated body 10 having a forwardly extending major portion 11 and a rearwardly extending minor portion 12. Inspec tion of Figure 4 will reveal that the body 10, in lateral cross section, is rectangular in shape. It will also be noted that the minor portion 12 is disposed at an obtuse angle with relation to the major portion 11 of the body, the obtuse angle disclosed being substantially 120 degrees. However, this angle is relatively unimportant except insofar as it disposes the minor portion 12 at such an angle as to be convenient as a hand grip for the operation of the tool. I

At its forward end, the major portion 11 has its bottom edge chamfered or bevelled at 13 to insure clearance between the body 10 and the floor surface indicated by the line F. The floor covering is indicated by dotted lines L which represent linoleum or other similar covering material which is to be removed from the floor F. At its forward end and disposed in juxtaposition, 1 pro vide a blade 14 which, obviously, will be formed of a material such as tool steel which will receive and hold a lateral forwardly presented sharp cutting edge 15 provided for severing the cement bond between the covering L and the floor F during manual movement of the tool forwardly. It is obvious from the drawing thatindicated in general by the numeral 16, which constitutes a guide for positioning-the blade during movement of the tool and also enables the operator to employ the tool as a lever and thus lift the blade 14 over the fulcrum 16 by lowering the rear minorportion or hand grip 12.

As clearly disclosed in the drawing, the fulcrum 16 is formed from a length of annular bar stock and is of a length greater than the transverse width of the body 10 so that it may contain an aperture 17 disposed on a chord of the circle so that a major portion 16a of the fulcrum 16 is disposed below the forward portion 11 of the body 10 and a minor portion 16b is disposed thereabove. This construction and disposition of parts is found to be very acceptable for this purpose, however, it will be understood that a larger size diameter fulcrum may be employed and then the aperture could be formed at the diameter of the fulcrum or at such other position as found acceptable without departing from the spirit of the invention. The minor portion 16b constitutes a guard adapted to guide the linoleum upwardly as shown in dotted lines of Figure 2 and thereby preclude injury to the hand of the operator.

Disposed transversely of the axis of the fulcrum 16 and substantially midway its length, I provide a bolt receiving aperture 18 disposed degrees .or at right angles to the aperture 17 and communicating therewith. It will be noted that the upper portion of the bolt aperture 18 has an enlarged socket 19 which is square in horizontal cross section and tapers downwardly. Below the aperture 17 the bolt receiving hole 18 is of a diameter sufiiciently enlarged over the diameter of bolt 20 to permit passage of the bolt body therethrough and terminates in a lower socket 19' which is substantially identical with the socket 19.

The fulcrum 1-6 is applied to the body with the juxtaposed forward end of the portion 11 and the rear end of the blade 14' disposed within the aperture 17 and they are provided with substantially vertical aligned apertures 21 and 22 of a size adapted to receive the body of the bolt 26 but not to pass its head 23. The socket 19 is of sufficient size to permit passage of the head 23 and therefore, when the bolt is applied through the aligned apertures 18, 21, and 22, the; head impinges against the blade 14 or the body of portion 11 (dependi-ng upon which is disposed on top for the time being) and the body of the bolt 20 extends through the apertures and cooperates with a clamping nut 24 disposed in socket 19' and held against rotation and clamps the fulcrum' 16 to the body of portion 11 and blade 14. Obviously, the bolt 20 may be removed at any time to sharpen or change blades 14 when found desirable.

At the extreme rear end of the hand grip or rear end portion 21 I provide a stripping blade 25 disposed in a vertical plane and seated in a, groove 26 formed in the under face of the hand grip 12. A bore 27 is formed in the hand grip 12 and communicates at right angles with the recess 26. A conventional bolt 27 having a kerfed upper end to normally receive a screW. r ver, has its kerf deepened by means of a metal saw or otherwise to form a bifurcated upper end 28 which is adapted to straddle the blade 25 and maintain it in its vertical plane and also to clamp it to the hand grip portion 12. To provide clamping action I apply an annular washer 29 about the body of bolt 27 and against its head 30 after which the blade 25 is inserted through the deepened kerf 31 and the bolt is passed through the bore 12 whereupon a conventional lock washer 32 and a knurled hand operated nut 33 is applied to the bolt 27 for clamping the blade 25 in position. This construction and arrangement of parts provides for the longitudinal adjustments of the blade so that it may be set at depths commensurate with the thickness of the linoleum to be removed and thus preclude marring the floor thereunder.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A hand tool for removing cementedfloor coverings, comprising an elongated transversely rectangular bar having a minor rear portion disposed at an obtuse angle relative to its major forward portion; a blade of substantially the same width as the bar at the forward end of said bar and having a lateral forwardly presented sharp edge disposed in advance of the forward end of said bar; a cylindrical fulcrum having an aperture therethrough transversely of its axis and disposed on a chord of the fulcrum and receiving the forward end of said bar and the rear end of said blade; said fulcrum bar and blade being provided with an aligned bolt receiving hole disposed substantially vertically therethrough; and a clamping bolt releasably and rigidly uniting said fulcrum bar and blade.

2. In a hand tool forremoving cemented floor coverings, the combination with an elongated rigid body and a forwardly extending blade disposed in juxtaposition with the front end of said body and having a lateral forwardly presented sharp edge; said body and blade having vertically disposed aligned bolt receiving holes therein; of a fulcrum laterally encircling the body and blade and an aperture in said fulcrum at right angles to said body and aligned with the bolt receiving holes of said body and blade; a bolt extending through the aligned bolt receiving ,holes and second named aperture with its head clamping against the blade and a nut cooperating with said bolt and clamping against said fulcrum and thereby releasably and rigidly uniting said blade, body and fulcrum.

References Cited in the lileof this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS l 1,266,215 Coneeny et al May 14, 1918 2,005,630 Overell' June 18, 1935 2,176,830 Wyper Oct. 17, 1939 2,211,757 Olsen Aug. 20, 1940 2,374,530 Fiebke Apr. 24, 1945 2,439,288 Evans Apr. 6,1948 2,569,242 Kors -1..- Sept. 25, 1951 2,569,286 Bunker Sept. 25, 1951 2,579,853 Pardee Dec. 25,1951

FOREIGN PATENTS 618,712 Germany Sept. 16, 1935 Mr "H 

